Farming leaders and industry experts have moved to reassure consumers about Welsh meat production after it emerged traces of horse meat had been found in beefburgers.

Suppliers in continental Europe are suspected of being the source of horse meat, after scientific tests founds traces of horse DNA in burgers on sale in some of the UK and Ireland’s leading supermarkets.

“Our traceability systems are second-to-none and a Welsh beefburger purchased from your local butcher will be exactly what it claims to be.”

Angela Sawyer, of the Ceredigion-based Food Centre Wales, said she believes the breach of regulations is an exception in an industry where rules on traceability and origins are robust.

Mrs Sawyer, a senior food technologist who has specialised in the meat industry for 16 years, said: “We can have a lot of faith in the system we have got in the UK, but unfortunately when something goes wrong the food industry gets quite a lot of bad press.

“It’s not a UK system it’s Europe wide – the legislation covers the whole of Europe and we all have the same requirements on us. We’re all audited independently by local authorities or the Food Standards Agency.

“When I go out to buy beef burgers I feel quite happy that what I’m buying is what it says in the ingredients list.”

Mrs Sawyer, whose organisation provides technical support for those developing new food products in Wales, said budget burgers like those found to be almost one third horse meat generally provide less beef than premium products.

But she added: “It’s not necessarily just about what you pay for something – it’s also about how it eats.

“Especially with something like a beef burger or a sausage – if it’s 100% meat it’s actually quite tough to eat so you want something else in there like onions to make it more palatable.”

Gren Jones, the director of abattoir firm Conwy Valley Meats, in Llanrwst, North Wales, said consumers concerned about the origins of the meat they buy should use a local butcher.

Mr Jones, 56, whose firm supplies beef to butchers across North and Mid Wales, said: “It’s quite important for the customer to ask for traceability – ask the butcher where he’s procured his meat.

“I should imagine it would be a lot easier doing it with a local butcher than one of the multiples.”

Mr Jones, who has been in the industry for 35 years, said he fears the incident will damage consumer confidence.

“I think people will think it’s a lot more widespread than it is. I think it’s an isolated thing.”

The comments from industry experts in Wales follow results of tests published on Tuesday by the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI).

A total of 27 products were tested, with ten of them containing horse DNA and 23 pig DNA.

Horse meat accounted for approximately 29% of the meat content in one sample from Tesco.

Professor Alan Reilly, chief executive of the FSAI, said there was no health risk but also no reasonable explanation for horse meat to be found.

He said: “The products we have identified as containing horse DNA and/or pig DNA do not pose any food safety risk and consumers should not be worried.”

“Whilst there is a plausible explanation for the presence of pig DNA in these products due to the fact that meat from different animals is processed in the same meat plants, there is no clear explanation at this time for the presence of horse DNA in products emanating from meat plants that do not use horse meat in their production process.

“In Ireland, it is not in our culture to eat horse meat and therefore, we do not expect to find it in a burger.”

The retailers have told food safety chiefs they are removing all implicated products from their shelves.

Prof Reilly said traces of other meats would be unacceptable for people who may not eat certain food on religious grounds.

He added: “Likewise, for some religious groups or people who abstain from eating pig meat, the presence of traces of pig DNA is unacceptable.”

Beef burger products which tested positive for horse DNA were produced by Liffey Meats and Silvercrest Foods in Ireland and one UK plant, Dalepak Hambleton.

Silvercrest said it was pulling products from sale and replacing them with new lines.

Some 31 beef meal products such as cottage pie, beef curry pie and lasagne were tested, with 21 found to be positive for pig DNA. All tested negative for horse meat.

Even lower levels were recorded in Moordale Beef Burgers in Lidl and St Bernard Beef Burgers in Dunnes Stores.

Tim Smith, group technical director at Tesco, said: “Today we were informed that the Food Safety Authority of Ireland (FSAI) has found that a number of beef products they have recently tested contained horse DNA.

“These included two frozen beef burger products sold by Tesco in both the UK and Ireland. Products sold at other retailers were also discovered to contain horse DNA.

“We immediately withdrew from sale all products from the supplier in question. We are working with the authorities in Ireland and the UK, and with the supplier concerned, to urgently understand how this has happened and how to ensure it does not happen again.

“We will not take any products from this site until the conclusion and satisfactory resolution of an investigation.

“We understand that many of our customers will be concerned by this news, and we apologise sincerely for any distress. Our customer service team is standing by to answer any questions customers may have.”

Aldi said they were conducting their own investigation.

“We have sought information from one supplier, Silvercrest, which is dealing directly with the FSAI on the issue that has been raised,” the company said.

In a statement, Lidl said it has taken the decision to remove all implicated products from sale pending a full investigation.

“A refund will be provided to customers who wish to return affected products,” said a spokesman.